The English duo will start alongside each other on the front row for tomorrow’s race, just as they did in Australia last week when Button jumped his team-mate to the first corner and took the chequered flag.Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher was in good form to take third and he will be joined on the second row by Red Bull’s Mark Webber. Kimi Raikkonen qualified fifth, but will take a five-place penalty for changing his gearbox.

Fist pump: Lewis Hamilton celebrates his pole drive (Picture: EPA)

That elevates Sebastian Vettel and Romain Grosjean into fifth and sixth spots respectively, with Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Sergio Perez and the repositioned Raikkonen completing the top ten.Speaking after setting the fastest lap, Hamilton said: ‘I don’t know if the best place to start is here.

‘It’s a long haul down to turn one.

‘The key is looking after our tyres and hopefully our car is in a much better position for the race tomorrow.’

The Malaysian circuit is notoriously hard on tyres and with Button widely regarded to be lighter on his than his McLaren rival, there is a belief he is well set for another victory attempt.